The objective of this work was to evaluate the performance of three natural fibers, namely, bagasse, kenaf bast fibers and cotton stalk, to produce particleboard suitable for application in green furniture and thermal insulation, using tannins and casein as natural matrices at the concentration of 15%. The particleboards were tested according to the relevant European standards to determine their mechanical properties, physical properties and thermal conductivity. The results showed that particleboards made from bagasse fibers and cotton stalks with casein adhesives exhibited higher mechanical performance and complied with European standards for board used for furniture and interior fitments. The particleboards prepared using tannins failed to satisfy the EN standards. All particleboards met the thermal conductivity requirements of the European standards.

Sulfated polysaccharides are important promising biologically active substances with anticoagulant properties. Biological activity is affected by the method of preparation, as well as the type of the polysaccharide and its molecular structure. In this work, we have considered various methods for the synthesis of promising anticoagulants – polysaccharide sulfates using the example of obtaining agarose sulfate. We compared various sulfating agents: chlorosulfonic acid, sulfamic acid, with various activators, and a deep eutectic solvent mixture of sulfamic acid with urea (in the melt). It has been shown that when urea is used as an activator of the process of sulfation of agarose with sulfamic acid in 1,4-dioxane, agarose sulfate with a high sulfur content (up to 14.5 wt%) is formed, which is close to the use of chlorosulfonic acid as a sulfating agent (with the production of agarose sulfate with 15.0 wt% sulfur). The use of solid catalysts in the process of sulfation of agarose with sulfamic acid leads to the production of agarose sulfate with a sulfur content of up to 14.1 wt% (for a catalyst based on the oxidized carbonaceous material Sibunit-4®). Sulfation of agarose in a deep eutectic solvent – a mixture of sulfamic acid with urea – leads to the production of agarose sulfate with a sulfur content of up to 13.7 wt%. The resulting agarose sulfates were characterized by FTIR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis, atomic force microscopy and DFT.

Sugar maple (Acer saccharum) wood chips were pretreated with aqueous sodium hydroxide, sodium borohydride, and hydrogen peroxide pretreatments, and the characterization (i.e., amount, molar masses, and molar mass distributions) of the lignin dissolved during the pretreatments was performed. Of the applied pretreatments, especially borohydride pretreatments were efficient in dissolving lignin from this feedstock, as 20% to 28% of the dissolved organics were found to consist of dissolved lignin, contributing to 3.4% to 9.0% of the initial wood lignin. Corresponding values for 2.5% and 5.0% alkaline peroxide pretreatments were from 5.9% to 9.2% dissolved lignin of the total dissolved organics and from 1.1% to 3.2% of the initial wood lignin. Additionally, determined molar masses and molar mass distributions indicated that borohydride pretreatments generally led to the formation of smaller-molar-mass lignin fragments when compared to reference pretreatments and to pretreatments conducted with alkaline peroxide process, indicating more efficient lignin degradation caused by borohydride addition. For example, Mn and Mw values of the analyzed reference effluents were 54%-62% and 66%-71% higher when compared to the corresponding borohydride effluents, respectively.

Old corrugated container (OCC) pulp was fractionated and it was found that the longer fiber fraction represented 76.54% and the short fiber fraction – 21.3% of the OCC pulp. The fiber length was 1.22 mm for the long fiber fraction and 0.6 mm for the short fiber, which was longer and shorter, respectively, than the fiber length of the whole OCC pulp (0.95 mm). In addition to fibers in pulp, the cellulosic microparticles that pass through a mesh screen or a perforated plate with a hole diameter of 76 μm, called fines, also have an impact on the properties of the final paper product. The fines content in both longer and shorter fiber fractions was lower than in the whole OCC pulp, consequently, drainage resistance (°SR) in the longer fiber fraction decreased to 14 from 21 in the whole OCC pulp. The air permeability and papermaking properties of the longer fiber were higher than those corresponding to the whole OCC and shorter fiber pulp. Therefore, the longer fraction of pulps can be used to manufacture test liner products and the shorter fiber fraction – for fluting paper.

Paddy straw is often burnt in the fields or disposed of in ways that cause extensive environmental pollution. The present study focused on using paddy straw in bio-compostable composites fabricated with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and thermoplastic starch blends as a matrix. Locally available paddy straw was chopped, cleaned and treated with 15% NaOH solution for four hours. The alkali treatment produced changes in the crystal structure and surface morphology of the paddy straw. Then, it was dispersed in blends of PVA and starch solutions containing polyethylene glycol (PEG200) as plasticizer. The PEG200 acted as both plasticizer and compatibilizer, as evidenced by the single glass transition peak and the lower melting point of the film cast from these blends. These composite films had higher thermal stability, increased tensile strength, but also flexibility. These properties were associated with structure development with strong hydrogen bonding interaction between the paddy straw and PVA-starch blends, which was supported by results of characterization studies.

Wet wipes are good examples of common textile materials used in daily life. Although they can serve for different purposes, wet wipes for personal hygiene are especially popular, in particular, those with antimicrobial properties. Considering their demand, especially during epidemics, it is expected that the wet wipe market has the potential to expand further. In order to achieve antibacterial properties, wet wipes contain various chemicals, some of which can have a negative impact on human health. By using natural substances, it is aimed to minimize the use of harmful substances in wet wipes and offer innovative products on the market. For this, in the present study, leaf extract and fruit juice from gilaburu plants (Viburnum opulus L.) were used. The solutions obtained were used directly, without the addition of any further chemicals, in the impregnation of nonwoven webs/fabrics. Then, the impregnated nonwoven webs (wet wipes) were analyzed in terms of antibacterial properties and storage stability. The obtained results showed that the wipes (nonwoven webs) impregnated with gilaburu fruit juice could decrease Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria populations even after 5 weeks of storage.

"Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a fatal malignancy with a poor prognosis. There is an urgent need to study the molecular mechanisms of HCC development and explore potential drugs to improve survival. This study aims to investigate the antitumor effects of astaxanthin on HCC proliferation, migration, invasion and apoptosis through regulation of adenosine-activated protein kinase (AMPK). CCK8, wound healing, transwell and flow cytometry assays were used to evaluate Hep 3B cell viability, migration, invasion and apoptosis after astaxanthin treatment. Protein expression was determined by Western blot. CCK8 assays showed that all concentrations (200 μM, 400 μM, 500 μM) of astaxanthin used in this study significantly inhibited the proliferation of Hep 3B cells (P < 0.05). Wound healing, transwell and flow cytometry showed that astaxanthin inhibited Hep 3B cell migration and invasion and induced apoptosis. Western blot showed that astaxanthin increased the expression of p-AMPK (P <0.05) and inhibited its downstream p-mTOR protein expression (P < 0.05). The effects of astaxanthin on cell proliferation, migration, invasion and apoptosis was attenuated after addition of the AMPK blocker Compound C. To conclude, astaxanthin inhibits the proliferation, migration and invasion of HCC by regulating AMPK, and promotes tumor cell apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner."

Polyester garments have an extensive availability nowadays.However, most post-consumer garments are burned and landfilled, leading to extreme pollution and significant waste of resources.Therefore, sustainably and economically recycling this post-consumer polyester (PCP) fabric waste for essential value-added products is meaningful and necessary.In this study, waste polyester fabrics obtained from PCP garments have been utilized in the development of composite materials.First, PCP fabric was dissolved in a methanol and sodium hydroxide solution.Then, the polyester paste was regenerated on regenerated cellulose-based fabric (viscose), constructing a viscose-based composite.The physical, thermal, chemical, morphological, and mechanical properties were examined for the viscose and viscosepolyester (VP) composites.FTIR, XRD, SEM, and percent add-on confirmed the presence of polyester in the composite.In addition, an add-on percentage of 10.71, higher crystallinity of 55.20%, thermal stability, and about 21% higher tensile strength were observed.The results, as mentioned above, ensured that the PCP waste can be used as a matrix for composite materials.

"Stabilized silver nanoparticles were obtained in the presence of a reducing agent – NaBH4 and a stabilizer – methylcellulose, at 40 °C and pH = 5.35-11. The stabilizing role of the polymer is shown, as it prevents the oxidation and agglomeration of nanoparticles. It was found that the synthesis pH is an important factor in the formation of stable nanoparticles, which contributes to the regulation of their hydrodynamic radius. The results of UV spectroscopy established that the synthesized samples of silver nanoparticles achieve aggregative stability within 96 hours. Solutions and films of hybrid nanocomposites were comprehensively investigated by spectral, XRD and thermal studies. The diffractogram of silver NPs, corresponding to JCPDS No. 04-0783, was confirmed by the XRD method. In the studied pH range, the hydrodynamic radius and distribution of Ag NPs in methylcellulose solutions had a polymodal character, and an increase in pH to 9–11 led to an increase in particle aggregation. It was found that stabilized silver nanoparticles showed antimicrobial activity against microorganisms – Streptococcus salivarius, Staphylococcus saprophyticus, Streptococcus mitis and Proteus vulgaris, with the formation of an inhibitory zone in the range of 15.0±0.2÷20.0±0.4 mm. The synthesized samples are of applied interest in the development of antibacterial drug systems."

"The development of novel routes for the production of functional textiles is an urgent need. Natural dyes are a safe and sustainable choice for the colouration of textiles. To achieve the colouration of textiles with natural dyes, mordanting methods have been highly explored; the present work targets the functional natural dyeing of cotton by the in-situ development of azoic dye. The paper discusses a new application approach of a novel natural dye (derived from conical prickles of Bombax ceiba bark) to cotton using mosquito repellent ethyl anthranilate. The dye obtained from the extract of Bombax ceiba bark conical prickles (CPBCE) was further converted into azoic dye by reacting it with diazotised ethyl anthranilate. The developed coloured cotton fabric was endowed with mosquito repellence, antibacterial action, and UV protection. The colouration properties and fastness of dyed samples were examined using standard methods. Moreover, the dyed samples were also characterised using TGA (thermogravimetric analysis) and XRD (X-ray diffraction) analysis. Thus, 100% mosquito repellent properties, good antibacterial protection, and excellent UV protection were imparted to cotton."